Took this past week off from running and will take another week off before easing back into my next training cycle in early September. Although I feel fine, I think in the past I didn’t allow sufficient recovery time after a race before starting the next training cycle. This resulted in some odd injuries and lack of motivation. In lieu of running, I’ve be getting on my bike trainer every morning for about 45 minutes, in addition to my normal strength training and stretching.

Below is what I devised for my weekly assessment and training plan for the upcoming Silver Strand Half Marathon (Coronado, CA) in mid-November. The training plan is very similar to the one I used for the AFC Half Marathon, but plan to incorporate a little more strength training and alternate my long runs between 13 to 15 miles each week. In addition, I’m going to monitor my blood pressure and check my pulse every morning this training cycle since it will give me an objective measure of whether or not I may be over-training or overly stressed.

Just completed the 2014 AFC half Marathon this morning. It was a lot tougher this year compared to last year due to the warmer weather and humidity. Last year started in the mid 60s and was overcast the entire race. This year started in the low 70s with little to no cloud cover and it seemed to warm up as the race went on. Considering the weather, I’m okay with my time. I was hoping to break 1:30, and I gave it a shot, but around mile 8 I knew I wasn’t going to be able to sustain the sub-7 minute pace, especially knowing there was a long and relatively steep 1.5 mile hill at the end of the course. From mile 8 I started to back off the pace and when the hills arrived, I was pretty fried and just wanted to finish in one piece.

I was 10th in my age group out of 441 finishers. This was actually two spots higher than last year, which was surprising considering I was over 3 minutes slower this year. I guess everyone was hurting. Since my training cycle for this race was rather lackadaisical and I don’t run well in the heat, I was expecting to finish much further down the list.

The race itself is pretty no-nonsense, which is why I like it. It is a runner’s race and they keep the organization and and all the sideshows simple. This year was no exception. They get the basics right – interesting course, plenty of parking, adequate transportation to the start, a good amount of port-a-potties, fair number of water stations and managing the flow of traffic – although I did have to stop once for the trolley to pass. It is a unique course that starts at the Cabrillo National Monument in Point Loma and finishes downtown at Balboa Park – so you get to experience a good part of the San Diego bayfront.

Although I enjoy running this race, not certain if I will run it again next year. The good part is that it is one of the few summer marathons in San Diego, but I’m thinking of maybe running something different next year.

I executed the 9-week training plan relatively closely, but didn’t really have my heart in it. It has been a bit warm and humid the past few weeks, so my pacing has been noticeably slower. I’m close to being in the same shape as last year when I ran this race in 1:29, but the weather looks like it will be a little warmer this year compared to last year. Last year started at 63 degree with cloud cover, but this year has a forecast of 71 degrees. As a result, I think it will be a challenge to break 1:30.

I don’t have much of a strategy going into the race tomorrow. I’ll run by feel, but try to maintain a sub-7 minute pace for most of the race. The course can be fast, with the first two miles on mild rolling hills, miles 2 – 5 downhill, miles 5 – 11.5 flat, miles 11.5 – 12.5 on a steep uphill, then flat to the finish.

I am 3 lbs lighter (145.2 lbs vs 142.2 lbs) with 0.8% less body fat (8.8% vs 8.0%) compared to the same time last year. However, I’m not sure I really feel any lighter when running. It is also interesting to note that I’m still experiencing the mild plantar fasciitis one year later. It hasn’t really gotten any worse, but doesn’t seem to want to go away.

It should be interesting tomorrow. Normally I go into these races motivated and with some level of confidence of how I’ll do. But honestly, I’m not sure what to expect or if I’ll rise to the occasion.

I’ve been averaging about 30 miles a week (Tuesday – Intervals, Thursday – Tempo, and Sunday – Long Run) for the past three weeks . I’ve been following my training plan pretty closely, but honestly haven’t been putting forth my best effort. On a scale of 1 to 10, I would rate my intensity at a 7. I’m giving myself a pass this training cycle since I’m pretty burnt out from all the racing the first half of the year and quite frankly the motivation to keep at peak fitness level just isn’t there. Also, I have a nagging pain on the ball of my left foot that started after my last marathon that is healing very slowly – I can still run, but it is probably prolonging the healing process. Personally, and it is probably applicable to most people, keeping in peak running form all year around is close to impossible. I think it is more practical to always maintain a good sustainable level of fitness, but only scale up to peak performance once our twice a year for a particular race.

I continue to cross-train (bike trainer, stretching, strength training and walking) and have kept a somewhat disciplined diet – mostly plant based whole foods, but not 100%. I’ve maintained my weight within a consistent and healthy range of 141 to 142 lbs and body fat between 7.9 to 8.0%. I’ve been sleeping okay, 7 to 8 hours a night, although I could probably use a little more. The stress level in my life has been moderate, work has been extremely busy and full of tight deadlines.

So with the AFC Half Marathon four weeks away, I’m not sure how it will go on race day. I’m in relatively good shape physically and been going through the motions of my training plan, but I know I’m not at my best.

The first two weeks of training for the AFC Half Marathon has been somewhat difficult. I’m still recovering from the last month’s marathon and still experiencing some minor aches and pain in both feet. The leg speed is coming back gradually, but mentally I just don’t have the motivation to push too hard. Eventually, the fog will lift, I’m sure.

As far as my training goes, I’m going through the motions. I’m averaging about 31 miles a weeks, with intervals on Tuesday, a tempo run on Thursday and a 15 mile long run on Sunday. I’m not going to post the details this training cycle as I have in the past, but if you want to see what I did for my runs the last two weeks, you can find them at the following link:

I’m doing three new things this training cycle. First, I’m incorporating some walking every evening after dinner. Not a lot, maybe 1 to 2 miles for 20 to 30 minutes. This also seems to help with the digestion. Second, I’m trying to eat less. I normally eat until I’m full, but want to stop a little before I get to that point. In general, we all just eat too much for no good reason and controlling my appetite is a habit I’d like to master. And third, take cold showers – not freezing – but cold enough to make it somewhat uncomfortable. There are supposedly lots of health benefits to cold showers, so I’m giving it a try. I’m not sure if any of this will help my running, but I’m trying to form these habits for health reasons and not necessarily to run faster.

Ran 28 easy pace miles this week. Legs are still not 100% recovered from the marathon, but good enough to start my half marathon training cycle next week. I have 9 weeks to prepare for the AFC Half Marathon. There is no specific goal in mind other than to put in a quality training cycle, stay in the moment and focus on each specific run and see where that takes me.

The training plan below is pretty straight forward, three running days (intervals on Tuesday, tempo on Thursday, and long run on Sunday) with cross-training (bike trainer, core/strength, and yoga) on my non-running days. In addition, will make an effort to get 8 hours of sleep per night and eat primarily a plant-based diet.

Although I have a general outline of my running, I purposely did not put in any planned paces. I find that running by feel on a particular day seems to work better for me than trying to hit a certain planned pace for a training run. Certain days I’ll feel great and be able to run hard while I know other days will be a grind, but just going with how the body feels takes away some of the stress of having to hit some arbitrary pace for the day.

Started running again this past week. I ran a 3 times for a total of 24 miles. I kept the running at a leisurely pace since I could feel I still wasn’t fully recovered from the marathon. I plan continue the easy pace running this week before I begin any speed work. I just want to ensure I’m fully recovered from the marathon since I have a history of injury when beginning another training cycle too early.

As I mentioned in my last post, over the next 12 months I plan to focus on improving my half marathon time. I have registered for 5 half marathons which are somewhat equally spaced apart. It will be interesting to see if tailoring my training plan to focus on the half marathon will improve my times. Logically, one would think so, but we’ll see.

Well, it’s that time of year when I look back and see how my racing season went. After a disappointing 2012/2013 season, I’m pleased to say this past year was probably my best season yet. I not only set a marathon PR, but also performed consistently in all my races. Both of marathons were run under the Boston Marathon qualifying standards and all four of my half marathons were sub-1:30.

The charts below go back 5 years. My average marathon time improved from 3:25 to 3:08, about 17 minutes faster than last year. I also improved my streak of running 11 straight marathons under 3:30.

So what went right this season?

1. Consistency: Although I had a few nagging injuries, none of them were serious to keep me from missing more than a few days. This allowed me to carry out my training plans for the most part.

2. Weight: I was running about 3 to 5 lbs less this past year. It doesn’t seem like much, but makes a significant difference over a marathon distance. Also, eating mostly a plant based diet seems to work for me. Although I can’t claim I’m 100% vegan, or even 90% for that matter, I don’t eat a lot of meat or animal based products.

3. Fewer Marathons: I only ran two marathons this season instead of the 3 or 4 in past years. I think this reduces burnout and kept me more motivated and focused.

4. Cross-Training: Cross-training has become a large part of my training regimen. This has allowed me to be more well rounded in my fitness. I limit my running to only 3 times a week, but supplement it with the bike trainer and a moderate amount of stretching/yoga and strength training.

5. Sleep: Don’t underestimate the power of a good night’s sleep. Routinely making an effort to get 8 hours sleep with an afternoon nap not only helps my running, but helps me manage stress as well as makes me a sharper person overall throughout the day.

So what’s next?

I’ve decided to focus my efforts on the half marathon for the 2014/2015 season. This past season I really enjoyed running the half marathon distance and found that I tend to be a better half marathoner than full marathoner. Also, I like the fact that training for the half marathon is less wear and tear on the body and recovery from a race is relatively quick. I think if I could dedicate my efforts to this distance over the next year, I may be able to shave 2 to 3 minutes off my current 1:25 PR. I have three half marathons planned for the rest of 2014 (August, November and December) and will probably run 2 or 3 more the first half of 2015. Not sure when I’ll run my next full marathon, but at this point, it probably won’t be until at least the late-2015.

Wow, this was a really fast course! If you are looking to qualify for the Boston Marathon, I would highly recommend this race. I set a PR by 8 minutes and I attribute it mostly to the gradual downhill course. There was only one mild incline (mile 6 to 7), which comes early in the race, then it is mostly downhill until mile 18 before it flattens out to the finish line. It almost seemed like the course was pulling me to the finish. However, I would caution a person of not being overly aggressive on the downhills. I think I got too aggressive during the downhill portions and was almost out of gas by mile 23. I really had to dig deep as I started to slow the last three miles to hang on to my sub-3:05 – as you notice on my Garmin.

I really enjoyed this marathon. It is a smaller marathon located in Ventura, CA and had less than 2,000 marathoners. I like smaller marathons a lot more than the big city races, they just seem more laid back, less stressful and less crowded allowing you to get into comfortable pace early in the run. The organization was good, really no issues to speak of. Port-a-potties were a bit scarce along the course and the water stops were adequate, although many of the stations didn’t seem to have any sports drinks, mostly just water.

The marathon starts in the small town of Ojai (elevation about 800 ft above sea level). There is a shuttle bus that picks you up in downtown Ventura and takes about 20 minutes to the start line. I caught the 5 am shuttle and arrived around 5:20 am. This was great, not a lot of waiting around before the 6 am start. There were some lines at the port-a-potties, but I think I waited less than 15 minutes.

The start takes you through the town of Ojai for about 8 miles before you begin your descent, primarily on a paved bike path, from miles 8 to 19. Around mile 19 it flattens out and eventually you arrive in downtown Ventura where you finish the race along the bayfront. The bayfront was nice, but you’ll be sharing some of the path with the general population since it is not exclusive to the runners. This wasn’t a big deal, but I did have to work my way around a few folks. But for the majority of the race, the scenery is really serene and the bike path is shaded by plenty of trees. The weather was good, but humid (83%) – low to mid-60s with nice cloud cover. There were some people cheering along the course – mostly family members, but for the most part you’ll be running in silence. The finish area was pretty typical, some water and snacks for runners and an area for a band and few dozen vendors.

Overall, this is a really nice race and a lightening fast course – this may be the fastest course in the country – no kidding. Not sure when my next marathon will be, but if I’m looking to run a PR or qualify for Boston, this race would be at the top of my list.

The final week of my taper went okay, but not great. The excitement I used to have going into a marathon just doesn’t seem to be there anymore. As a result, my motivation and focus has waned. I plan to take an extended break from full marathons for the foreseeable future and focus on improving my half marathon time.

Report Card

Running: (B) 10 miles of running this week before the marathon. Short intervals on Tuesday and a short tempo on Thursday. Legs felt a little flat, but not unusual during the taper period.

Sleep: (A-) Got 8 – 9 hours of sleep almost every night, but fewer afternoon naps during the day.

Diet/Hydration: (B) Ate okay, but probably a few more sweets than I should have.

Weight/Body Fat: (B) My weight increased 0.6 lbs from 143.6 lbs to 144.2 lbs. Body fat also increased from 8.3% to 8.5%. A little weight gain is almost inevitable during the taper period since the activity level is considerably less.

Cross-Training/Stretching: (A-) No cross-training other than stretching for 20 to 30 minutes daily.

Stress Management: (D) Very busy and stressful week at work. It’s amazing to me what stress does to the mindset and body. I was hoping it would be a relatively laid back week, but it was one of those weeks.

Body Condition/Injuries: (A) Body felt great, no other significant pains to speak of going into the marathon.

Overall: (B) Okay week of training, but since the stress level was high, I think it affected other aspects of my training.